UW Cancer Center Riverview remodel complete

Lori Slattery Smith, director of the UW Cancer Center Riverview, talks just outside the new reception area of the center, which is geared to provide more patient privacy.
(Photo:
DEB CLEWORTH/Daily Tribune Media
)Buy Photo

WISCONSIN RAPIDS – “Comfortable” might not be the first word that comes to mind when thinking about chemotherapy.

It is a word used by Connie Steele of Vesper, who receives chemo at newly-remodeled and expanded UW Cancer Center Riverview.

Steele, 52, found out she had pancreatic cancer Oct. 2 and due to complications, started treatment in Rochester.

“I just so wanted to get back to the area, and I knew Riverview hospital had the UW here, and I knew that I would be able to come here to get my cares,” Steele said.

She got the OK to return home in January and now receives a 5-hour treatment every other week at the local cancer center.

The expanded center, which re-opened in late May, has almost doubled in size, going from 4,498 square feet to almost 9,500 square feet.

When the center first opened in September 2002, it was considered large at the time, said Tami Barber, marketing and communications at Riverview Medical Center.

The patient volume ended up being three times what was projected — between 60 and 65 patients are seen daily at the center — and the $3 million expansion was needed to accommodate those needs, said Nan Taylor. Many local vendors were utilized in the work, she said.

“The intent with the renovation was to do a couple things — improve efficiency and to provide more space and to really put some attention to patient privacy,” said Lori Slattery Smith, director at the cancer center.

Improvements

Those improvements have been well received by patients and staff, Slattery Smith said. Cancer center staff, support departments and patients all had input into the changes.

“Patients had a lot of feedback in terms of what they wanted for their experience here, if you will,” Slattery Smith said. “So we wanted to really have attention to supporting that patient experience so that it was supportive, healing and a very positive experience here.

“They love the new chairs, they love the space; we’ve had several comments regarding the attention to privacy, and they appreciate that,” she said.

The center now features eight chairs in the infusion area, an addition of two to the original six, each with their own equipment. There are privacy curtains available, movable to allow patient interaction when desired.

The Riverview Hospital Auxiliary Love Lights project funded heated massage chairs for the patients. The specially-treated windows were lowered to provide a better view for patients and allow patients to look out, but people on the outside cannot see in.

Two additional exam rooms bring that total to eight, all while following the overall design theme of the hospital. The areas are enhanced with new privacy options, including a new waiting area outside of the radiation room.

The entrance will remain the same — through the main doors of Riverview — so patients can be assisted, if necessary.

There now are two semi-private treatment rooms and two private rooms, when previously, there was just one private room. Each area also has its own TV.

The private rooms are appreciated by Steele, who said the treatments tend to make her quite nauseous.

“It’s comfortable, and that’s real important when you’re getting chemotherapy,” Steele said from her treatment room. “They always keep me comfortable in my room so that I don’t have to worry that I’m bothering another patient.

“You can’t hear conversations that are next to you because there’s enough space in between, and everything is kept so confidential; they’re so good about that here,” she said.

Close to home

“If you find yourself in the same position I’m in — one that you never thought that you’d be in — there’s a place you can go right in your own community and you can feel comfortable and know that you are getting state-of-the-art care,” Steele said. “I just want people in the community to know we have a lovely, wonderful center here.”

Being close to home can help with healing.

“You can be close to family, they can come in here and be with you to support you, and you’re in your community, so you don’t have to travel far to get back home,” Slattery Smith said.

Slattery Smith asks patients how they feel when the come to the center now.

“A couple of them say it just feels like you can come in and just relax, like some of that fear melts away, because you come into an environment that is calm, a friendly face at the reception area and you just feel like it’s going to be OK,” she said.

Deb Cleworth can be reached at 715-423-7200, ext. 6730 or deb.cleworth@cwnews.net. Follow her on Twitter @DebCleworth.